opposite attraction

I Got Soul

2010-06-04T17:19:00.000-07:00

*rapping* "It's been a long time, that I left you.....without a strong beat to step to, step to"
LOL, This is the rap my husband starting rapping when I told him that my last post was April 8, 2010! Anyone remember that old rap by Eric B and Rakim (I think)?! Well, apparently Lance does. If you don't, take a listen...it'll give you a good laugh!

Anyways, I am so very sorry that I've been missing in action for a while.....I've been through alot in my personal life and haven't found the time to blog. Hope all of you are doing well! I'm anxious to get back into the swing of things!

Lately I've been into black and white, so I'll leave you with a few beautiful Inspiration pictures...it's sort of like a peace offering!

IMAGES FROM THE NEST

The Small Reveal!!

2010-04-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

I know, I know....a small reveal doesn't really sound that exciting, but I couldn't really call the reveal of our downstairs half bath BIG. It's actually pretty small! :) But I'm new to all this decorating stuff...so I had to start small. Do you remember the before picture in my first post about it? Let me refresh your memory:

And here she is now...

Chrome is in the details...

The sink, toilet, and all the hardware was bought at Lowe's....my favorite hardware store. I purchased the frame from Big Lots for six bucks! The print out of the picture I got from Oh Brooke, only cost $3.00 to print out at Staples. The quality is much better than what I could achieve at home. The candle holders were $5.00 a piece from Kohls online and I purchased the soap dispenser from K-Mart.

Everything else was things I had lying around and waiting for a home!

Oh! Almost forgot....I put a metal basket under the sink with supplies with a few magazines under it.

Thanks for looking!!

I Was Featured!!

2010-04-06T09:33:00.000-07:00

On one of my favorite blogs The DIY Showoff!! Please go check it out. Thanks Roeshel!!

Cutest Bungalow EVER!!

2010-03-26T12:29:00.000-07:00

I was flippling through Sunset on Wednesday, and they featured the cutest bungalow ever!

Lauren and Eric Wendlandt saw potential is this 96-year-old, 750-square-foot, fixer-upper and updated wiring, plumbing, total gut renovation.

You can tell that they took extra care to utilize every square inch of this home! There is a lot of storage placed high on the walls...what a great idea when you working with a small space!

They also took advantage of the backyard, which was three times the size of the house. This picture was simply labled...LIVE OUTSIDE.

For more pictures, visit here: http://tinyurl.com/StylishLiving

Check out Sunset's idea homes for more decor ideas...it's a great resource!

Easter Egg Tip...

2010-03-26T07:46:00.000-07:00

I don't know if anyone else will be surprised about this as I was, I may be just a little behind! When I was reading one of my magazines, they mentioned that you could use brown eggs to accomplish a richer color for Easter eggs. I don't know about you guys, buy my Easter eggs always seem a bit washed out...

....but with brown eggs you get a much richer color!

It takes about five to ten minutes longer to dye them, but you're rewarded with deep, jewel-like shades. If you want to see speckles, leave them in for only three minutes.

For more tutorials on dying unique easter eggs, check out these blogs!

Design Sponge

Simply Modern Mom

I Love Houzz, Spring, and Blue!

2010-03-22T06:37:00.000-07:00

I've been checking out Houzz idea books to get me motivated for some home decor and spring! Such pretty pictures and I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

So Excited!!

2010-03-08T06:21:00.000-08:00

My Nest Bio is being featured on the Chat Page!! Go and check it out if you would like to see pictures of my home. There are a few rooms not pictured but alot of them are! It is right under the blue column titled blogs and my screen name is misslin20. Enjoy!

Alfredo Pasta Bake: My Over-used Recipe

2010-03-04T18:20:00.000-08:00

I'm participating in the Over-used Recipe Swap over at Simply Modern Mom!! Although I'm not sure ANY recipe is over used in my house....right Lance? :) I don't cook much, but this is so easy and doesn't require much effort!

This is a recipe from Amber's Delectable Delights. It's so simple, easy, and inexpensive...as a matter of fact we ate it tonight! My husband loves it!

Alfredo Pasta Bake

Ingredients:

8 oz pasta, cooked and drained

2 cups broccoli florets

1 cup mushrooms

1.5 cups chicken, cooked and shredded or diced

1 jar Alfredo sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

2 Tbls butter

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Coat the bottom of the two small or one medium baking dish with a thin layer of Alfredo sauce. In a medium bowl, mix the pasta, broccoli, mushrooms, chicken, garlic and Alfredo sauce until combined. Place mixture into baking dish and top with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cut the butter into small pieces and scatter on top of the cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is hot and bubbly.

My Favorite Nook

2010-03-04T17:57:00.000-08:00

After reading a post on Adventures in Renovating, I decided to post about my favorite nook in my house. My favorite nook posted so far is Rambling Renovator's adorable nursery...mostly because I have serious baby fever right now! :) Check it out!

Rambling Renovators stated that, "I love that it will be the place where Chloe first learns about colour, texture, shape, design, art, and space." How sweet!

On to my favorite nook...I'm not sure if it can be considered a nook, but it a small space that we both spend a lot of time at! It is my "dining" space in my kitchen. It was not very large so we decided to go with a simple pub table that came with bar stools from Target. The space was definitely not my favorite at first sight....but we saw potential.

After a paint job, some new lighting, new flooring and a few accessories..our nook is starting to shape up!

I also love this little window where you could see into the Den....Lance seems to think it's perfect for me serving him while he searches the web! :) I don't mind one bit though.....most days!

I love being in the kitchen now...and let me tell you, I am NOT a cook! But I love that this is the kitchen I'm learning in. This little nook will be where we sit to eat them or throw them out! LOL Either way, we have a lot of meaningful conversations here.

If I could change anything...I think I would have passed on the free light fixture we received at Lowes and went with the smaller version of the Portfolio chandelier that we also have in our dining room.

But overall, I think I did a pretty good job and we love it!

Half-Bath Elements

2010-03-02T09:30:00.000-08:00

The next space I am working on is the half bathroom downstairs. They say start small...so that's exactly what I'm doing. And by small I mean REALLY small! Here's what I'm working with...

A blue slanted sink (to fit the space, no doubt), dusty orangish curtains complete with a valance, floor to ceiling floral wallpaper, and lovely vinyl flooring. And that's only what you can see in this picture...the list goes on!! :)

First things first...I reffered to Better Homes and Gardens for some advice. They me some great advice for when you are dealing with small baths:

Take a reflective look.

*expand the area with mirrors*

Treat windows simply.

...their bathrooms don't look small to me, but anyways...

Use Pearly Whites.

Lead the eye upward.

So I'm off with my BHG list and a few other elements I plan to incorporate. Even though it's a very small space, it will be the bath that guests use so I want it to look nice!

I'm starting with some leftover JCP blinds from my old kitchen, replaced by those famous West Elm curtains !

Then added this free print...first seen on Oh Brooke.

Added a frame.....

This frame is actually in competion with a number that I bought from a yardsale a while back complete with ribbed edges and a photo mat. We'll see! Any sugguestions??

The cutest Stainless steel trashcan EVER for $8 at Big Lots. Pleeeaase don't hate on Big Lots!! :)

Then alot of bling a.k.a. chrome in the details!! I have a few more things in mind but you'll have to wait to see them in my final pictures!!

My First Picasa Photograph!

2010-02-18T14:23:00.000-08:00

After reading some great tutorials from Funky Junk Interiors and Censastional Girl, I decided to download Picasa3. It's a pretty cool photo editing program that is easy enough for a beginner like me! And I'm only using a Canon Powershot 1200....look at the difference in this pie!

And for those of you who are interested in that sweeeet pie, here's the recipe:

Frosty Toffee Bits Pie

Ingredients:

1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup half-and-half cream

1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed

1 package (8 ounces) milk chocolate English toffee bits, divided (I added Butterfingers!)

1 graham cracker crust (9 inches)

Directions:

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth.

Beat in cream until blended.
Fold in whipped topping and 1 cup toffee bits.
Spoon into crust; sprinkle with remaining toffee bits.

Cover and freeze overnight.

Remove from the freezer 10 minutes before serving.

And trust me, if I can make it...anyone can.

Cute Tray!

2010-02-18T13:56:00.000-08:00

I bought a really cute tray from Big Lots a while back. It was only eight bucks and went along with the color scheme in the Master Bedroom, so I picked it up! When I unpacked it last week and put it on the dresser, I invisioned a few candles and pretty accessories sitting on it.

Upon my husband's arrival at home, he said, "Is this for all our junk?" I replied, "Yes." I didn't think telling him that I bought a tray that I didn't really know what I was going to do with yet would go over well. Well, I should have...because after a short time, it looked like this:

I think he approves!! :) So much for those pretty candles and accessories...

2010-02-10T09:16:00.000-08:00

Lonnie Magazine Issue No. 3 is out now! You can go check it out here:
http://www.lonnymag.com/

Love, Love, Love

2010-02-05T11:23:00.000-08:00

Since this is the month for love...I thought I would dedicate one of my first post to some things I LOVE about the new house!

1. The Garage

I've never understood why people use garages for man-caves and playrooms! Although, I can appreciate the beauty in one...such as this one:

cary bernstein architect

But really, I just want to park in it. I want to warm up my car during the winter without having to go outside, protect my car from the elements, and store stuff in my various stages of undress in the morning! :)

2. The New Fridge

I eat crushed ice like it's candy...now I have my FIRST, very own candy maker!

3. My Bedroom
...that allows us to have TWO bedside tables. We did not have room for that luxury in our old house and it was so annoying to have to reach over my husband to get something off of it! Luckily, the furniture store we bought our bedroom set from still had them available at 20% off!

4. The Neighbors...on the right side

In our old neighborhood....our neighbors didn't like our smallest dog, Bentley. Although, I admit, he IS a bit hyper but due to the empty lot next door, we only have to worry about ONE set of neighbors!!

5. The Neighborhood

We came from a four-lane street, one of the busiest in our city. Directly in front of our house was a street light. Lovely. So we've relocated to a much quieter part of town...hopefully not the opposite extreme since most of them are retired!! So far, we love the peace and quiet!

Our Staircase Transformation

2010-02-05T11:22:00.000-08:00

I recently bought Lance both the first and second Transformer movies and like a little boy he watched them over and over again. :) Now I can relate to my husband's fixation with the Transformers... It reminds me of my fixation with a good before and after. You can never see enough!! I still get awe-struck and amazed over some of the before and after pictures I see on blogs like Design Sponge, DIY Showoff, Better After and don't get me started on In the Fun Lane's BEAUTIFUL furniture makeovers!

It's from those amazing bloggers, that inspire me to do a little transforming myself. Step over Optimus, and take a look at the before of our staircase:

Pretty rough, huh? There is no telling what that nasty thing would have done to my man's allergies! But I had hope with inspiration from House Beautiful like this:

So after buying a few supplies, I am pleased that the staircase now looks like this:

I kept the original railing and cleaned it and applied polyurethane to it. I did have to replace the bottom tread because underneath all that nastiness...it was broken. The best part is a friend installed it for free!

I love the way it looks up against the hardwood..

Cost Breakdown:

Runner Installation $100.00

Runner: $80.00 LOWES

Hardware: $10.00 LOWES

Kilz: $15.00 WALMART

One Tread: $9.00 LOWES

Polyurethane: GARAGE FREEBIE :)

Dap/Caulk: GARAGE FREEBIE :)

**carpet padding was included in installation**

TOTAL COST: $214.00

Yeah....I Can Fly.

2010-02-04T06:08:00.000-08:00

This was the title to the email I received from my husband this morning. Quoted from the movie, Iron Man. After several attempts, Iron Man realized that he had fixed his suit in such a way that allowed him to fly. Basically he was saying...I'm the man!! :) This is my husband's humorous email to my sister-in-law, her husband, and I:

"For all of you who have been follwing the many creative and courageous acts of Lance Maximus. I am here to announce yet one more. Now we need to have a moment of enlightenment and look at all the events that have gotten me here. Now I have learned to install the kitchen backsplash, change electrical sockets/switches, install dishwashers, hardwood flooring, and tile completed with a heating system. With the help of my lovely assistant (ME!) I installed a over the top neutron accelerator better known as a microwave oven. But all these things pale in comparison to what I did last night. That is......wait for it............ installing a water line from under the house! Yes, you heard right faithful Lance Maximus followers I have installed a water line. I had to drill a hole in my lovely harwood (dont tell my wife) and then I had to slowly and percisly lower a petroleum based water aperatus down the hole (better known and a plastic tube) and then hook that aperatus to a copper preinstalled water line under the house. Yes you heard right. I said under the house. So as of 6:52 PM on February 3, 2010, the water line for the fridge has become a reality. So taking a line from my fellow awesome entrpreneuer Iron Man, Yeah, I can fly.

Awesome is who I am, Amazed is what you should be............."

LOL, humble much??

Hello and Welcome!

2009-12-17T12:41:00.000-08:00

Hello and welcome to my blog! My name is Melinda, but most call me Lin. I'm 26 years old, have been married to my wonderful husband for three years, and closed on my second home on August 21, 2009. Since then we have been furiously working on our home so we could move in!!

We are now a couple of weeks from moving in and I decided to start a blog to track our decorating successes (I'll try and stay positive and pretend like there won't be any failures). I will also review some of the renovations we have done previously and what we learned. I hope you enjoy!

There is just one little catch.....my husband and my taste in decor couldn't be more different, hince the name opposite attraction. This could get interesting.....